The main issue that is driving me nuts is that when baked @ 325 in a convection oven, the free-form loaf busts out the side. It does not seem to matter if it's proofed in the fridge or at room temp, and seems to be worse at a higher temp. We've tried a few different ways of slashing. Does anyone notice any red flags in the formula or have any suggestions for oven settings?

There doesn't seem to be anything terribly out of whack with the recipe. I calculate that about 35% of the flour is prefermented, and the overall hydration is 56%. This might be a bit too dry, but probably doesn't have an impact on your bursting problem. I would suspect that the loaf needs more proofing, as side bursting is often due to underproofing. I find that the poke test is not always accurate on loaves that have been refrigerated.

others have said proofing is a problem, could be, i like to coat the loaf with oil for final proof, which helps to keep the crust pliable, a dry crust is more apt to break, you can also try to proof with a very moist air, i have a proofing cabinate that is heated and steam added, which helps, but then you should get it into the oven as soon as it is ready, to let it sit in the open before going to the oven is asking for problems also.(crust dring).

There are a number of complex factors in your recipe which impact on dough performance...examples being that cocoa and sugar are both thirsty ingredients, cider contains alchohol which will weaken the gluten, espresso is acidic, etc.

But most of these difficulties can be overcome by finding a way to add more water into your formula. I'm sure the paste is too tight and the ferment is becoming stuck. Taking account of the cocoa, hydration is barely over 50%. I don't make breads like this, but note that Hamelman's Black Bread formula, for instance, uses hydration of 68%.

What you say makes perfect sense, and it sounds like it could get complicated with interactions between many ingredients. Just out of curiosity, is there a formula or rule of thumb to estimate the additional water needed for a thirsty ingredient to keep the effective dough hydration? If there is 1% sugar, would the hydration be increased 0.5%? 1%? 2%?

balancing formulae can be quite tricky, and of course it really does depend what product you are making.

For Cocoa we generally teach to hydrate at 100% in cake formula. In all honesty, I have never used it in bread.

For sugar, it is more important to understand how sugar behaves..what its functional properties are. I'm thinking here that, while it is hygroscopic, so tends to win out in competition for water, it also induces flow in the baked product...that softening effect. So constructing the formulae really succeeds by understanding all the functional aspects of the ingredients in the formula.

Thanks for the explanaton, Andy. I, for one, would love to take a class from you to help me understand the properties of the various ingredients and their interactions. If you are ever so inclined to give a seminar on the topic here in California, I suspect we could gather a quorum.

I'd definitely up the hydration if I were you. Also, slashing fairly deep can help. I've had problems with bursting sides on some loaves too even though to my best of knowledge, the doughs had been proofed adequately. When I started to slash them a little deeper, I got no more cracks. Also, try to proof your dough in a reasonably humid environment. At the proofing stage, perhaps you could try and 'tent' your dough under aluminum foil sprayed with some water on the underside.

How much is 8,5 grams of yeast of the total formula? about 1,5% when I look at the recipe??? I think that is way too much in my opinion. I can raise a bread with yeast only with a total dough weight of 1,5 kilo and some 800 grams of flour by using only a third of yeast you're using and no sourdough starter. You're using relatively lots of yeast and a starter. No wonder this bread sort of explodes in your oven.

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